Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Calvin College junior Travis Vegter has been named named a second team National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-America Scholar-Athlete in the college division. A forward, Vegter (Hudsonville, MI/Unity Christian HS) is the first individual from Calvin to receive the award. To be named an NSCAA Scholar All-American, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average (on a 4.0 scale). The player must also start more than 50 percent of all games and be nominated by an institution that is a current NSCAA College Services member. This fall, Vegter stood out on the pitch, scoring 27 goals to go with six assists for a total of 60 points. He was named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player and also to the All-MIAA first team. He was later named to the NSCAA Division III All-Central Region first team and last week, was named to the NSCAA Division III All-America second team.

Friday, December 13, 2013

Calvin College junior Travis Vegter has been named a second team Division III All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America as sponsored by Continental Tire. The award was announced earlier this morning. A native of Hudsonville and a graduate of Hudsonville Unity Christian High School, Vegter is receiving Divison III All-America honors for the first time. A forward, Vegter tallied a team-leading 27 goals and 60 points this fall while also receiving credit for six assists. Four of his goals were game-winners during the season. Last month, Vegter was named to the Capital One Division III Academic All-America first team for achieving high marks in the classroom. He is the first individual in Calvin men’s soccer history to be named both an NSCAA Division III All-American and a Capital One Academic All-American.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

ALBION, Mich. – David L. Neilson, the commissioner of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association since 2002, has announced he will retire from the position at the conclusion of the 2013-14 academic year. The announcement of Commissioner Neilson’s retirement came Tuesday from Dr. Eileen Wilson-Oyelaran, president of Kalamazoo College and vice chairwoman of the MIAA Presidents’ Council. He is the eighth and third-longest serving commissioner in the MIAA’s 126-year history. Commissioner Neilson and his wife, Karen, live in Royal Oak. They have four children and five grandchildren. The MIAA is the nation’s oldest collegiate athletic conference, founded in 1888. The MIAA consists of nine private colleges from Michigan and northern Indiana. Member institutions are Adrian College, Albion College, Alma College, Calvin College, Hope College, Kalamazoo College, Olivet College, Saint Mary’s College and Trine University.

Monday, December 09, 2013

Four members of the MIAA champion Calvin men’s soccer team have received Continental Tire Division III All-Central Region honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Named to the first team from Calvin are junior Travis Vegter and sophomore Taylor Pruis while senior Zach Willis and junior Sean Broekhuizen have been named to the second team. As members of the first team, Vegter and Pruis are both eligible for Division III All-America consideration. Vegter and Willis are receiving all-region honors for the first time while Broekhuizen and Pruis are first time all-region selections. Under the direction of head coach Ryan Souders, Calvin finished the 2013 season with an overall record of 14-5-1 while capturing an unprecedented seventh consecutive MIAA regular season crown with a 12-2-0 league mark.

Friday, November 22, 2013

Calvin College junior Travis Vegter has added another prestigious honor to his growing raft of awards. A native of Hudsonville and a graduate of Hudsonville Unity Christian High School, Vegter has been named a first team Capital One Academic All-American for Division III men’s soccer as selected by the College Sports Information Director’s Association of America (CoSIDA). Vegter is the fourth individual in Calvin men’s soccer history to be named a Capital One Academic All-American. Others to do so include Sam Glass (1997), Will Watts (1997), Joel Veldhouse (2003 & 2004) and Greg Snapper (2009). A biology major with a 3.41 G.P.A, Vegter was named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player and earned first-team All-MIAA honors for Calvin. A native of Hudsonville, Mich., he led No. 25 Calvin to a 14-5-1 record. Vegter led the MIAA with 60 points as he scored 27 goals with six assists for the Knights. His point and goal totals are the second highest marks in Calvin school history.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

The season has come to a close for the Calvin men’s soccer team but the Knights have still cracked the latest set of NSCAA Division III Top 25 rankings. The Knights are ranked 25th in the latest poll, released earlier this afternoon. Calvin finished the year with an overall record of 14-5-1, finishing the year with an unbeaten streak of eight games. Calvin opened the year with an 0-3-0 record but proceeded to win 14 of its next 17 games, losing only two in that stretch. Calvin captured the MIAA regular season title with a 12-2-0 conference record, marking the seventh consecutive MIAA regular season crown for the Knights. The streak is the longest championship streak in MIAA men’s soccer history. Calvin advanced to the MIAA Tournament finals, finishing in a 1-1 double-overtime tie with Hope. The Flying Dutchmen gained the automatic bid to the NCAA III Tournament however by winning a penalty kick shootout 5-4.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Calvin College junior Travis Vegter has been named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player in men’s soccer. Calvin freshman Stephan Hooker has also been named the MIAA’s Freshman of the Year. In addition, six Calvin players have received All-MIAA honors as Vegter, senior Zach Willis, junior Sean Broekhuizen and sophomore Taylor Pruis have been named to the first team while senior Ben Honeycutt and Hooker have been named to the second team. Calvin captured the MIAA regular season title this year for the seventh consecutive season, finishing 12-2-0 in conference play and 14-5-1 overall.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Calvin men’s soccer hosted the Flying Dutch of Hope College on Saturday afternoon for the MIAA Tournament Final. The teams split the regular season series, with Calvin winning 5-1 at home and losing 3-1 at Hope. Unfortunately for Calvin, a well-played match did not spell victory for the Knights, and a penalty shootout thriller eventually fell into Hope’s favor. The game finished in a 1-1 double-overtime tie with Hope winning the penalty kick shootout 5-4. Calvin junior Sean Broekhuizen scored the lone goal for the Knights with sophomore Taylor Pruis picking up an assist on the play, boosting his season assist total to 17 which matches the Calvin single-season record originally set by Joey Barone in 1991 and later matched by Nick Capisciolto in 2005.

Thursday, November 07, 2013

Calvin men’s soccer hosted a MIAA semi-final matchup on Thursday against the Hornets of Kalamazoo. Calvin, the top seed in the MIAA, and Kalamazoo, the fourth seed, split the regular season series, with the Hornets winning the first contest at Calvin 3-0, and the Knights avenging the loss with a 4-3 victory at Kalamazoo. With a berth in the MIAA Tournament Final on the line, Calvin got the best of the Hornets in the most important of their three matchups this season, defeating Kalamazoo 3-0 at Zuidema Field. Calvin advances to the MIAA Tournament Final which will be played Saturday at Zuidema Field. Calvin will face Hope in Saturday’s MIAA Tournament final at noon. Hope defeated Olivet 2-0 in Thursday’s other semifinal.

Tuesday, November 05, 2013

The Calvin men’s soccer team completed its regular season with a 5-0 win over Albion on Tuesday afternoon, claiming the outright conference title for the third straight year and at least a share of the MIAA title for the seventh straight season. The Knights also celebrated their senior class as Eric Hollis, Ben Honeycutt, Zakk Rankin, Mike Sanderson, and Zach Willis were all honored before the game.Calvin improves to 13-5-0 and 12-2-0 in the MIAA while Albion falls to 8-10-2 and 5-7-2 in league play. The Knights now look forward to Thursday when they will host the Hornets of Kalamazoo in a MIAA Tournament semi-final matchup at Zuidema Field slated to start at noon. Calvin and Kalamazoo split the regular season series, with the Knights winning 4-3 at Kalamazoo while falling to the Hornets 3-0 at home.